Surface covering and method of simulating handlaid tile thereby



July 7, 1925. 1,545,428 C. F. HUMPHREYS SURFACE COVERING AND METHOD OF SIMULATING HANDLAID TILE THEREBY Filed Feb. 5. 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet l July 7, 1925. 1,545,428

c:. F. HUMPHREYS SURFACE COVERING AND METHOD OF SIMULATING HANDLAID TILE THEREBY Filed Feb. 5, 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Gimp/My; 5442M 2 3 @511 M W n 3 atfozdup Patented July 7, 1925.

UNITED STATES CHARLES F. HUMPHREYS,

PATENT OFFICE.

OF LANCASTER, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO ARM- STRONG COOK COMPANY, A- CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA.

Application filed lcbrnary 25,1925. Serial No. 11,464.

To all wJzom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES F. HUM- PHREYS, a'citi'zen of the United States, residing at Lancaster, in the county of Lancaster and State of Pennsylvania, have in vented certain newand useful Improvements in Surface Coverings and Methods of Simulating Handlaid Tile Thereby, of'which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to surface coverings as, for instance linoleum, and has as an object the provision of an improvement upon the invention disclosed and claimed in m Patent N 0. 1,520,130, dated Dec. 23, 1924.

It is an object ofthe invention to utilize the non-uniformity of a limited number of differing appearance of units and, in addition thereto, to insert in :an apparently haphazard manner other units differing from any of those already named.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a, surface covering decorated by a pattern of uniformly shaped units, utilizing a limited number of differing appearances placed With studied nonuniformity, repeating the actual arrangement over spaces of sufficient extent to be not grasped by a single glance of the eye, and to intersperse in such arrangement, in an apparently haphazard manner, units having a variety of decorations.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a surface decorated as last described, wherein the haphazardly placed units, in successive areas, have the same pattern but a difference of color to further carry out the object of the invention.

Further objects of the invention Will appear from the following description when read in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein Fig. 1 is .a plan view of a surface covering showing :a repetition of an actual arrangement; and

Fig. 2 is a like View of a modified form.

As shown in Fig. 1, the surface is decorated by a plurality of squares 10,' each square being formed of four rectangles 11 arranged about a center square 12.

In accordance with the principle already referred to and disclosed in my patent above identified, these rectangles 11 and central square 12 are made up of a limited number, say 3, of different colors or of different shades of the same color, whereby to simulate burned tile which, because of the difference 'in intensity of heat at which they may be burned, come out of the kiln with different shades of color. In hand-laid tile, such as.

are taken promiscuously from stock, the differences 1n color occur haphazard.

This haphazard arrangement is. produced in a studied manner in the present invention, as already explained in the former patent, so -that there is no uniformity over'a space of say 54 inches and throughout a width, in linoleum, of 6 feet. Successive spaces of the size named will repeat the'actual arrange ment occurring, because of the necessity of forming the surfaces by machine as, for instance, the plate of the linoleum machine.

To carry forward the idea referred to, certain of the units of some of the squares 10 are replaced by a square decorated by a variety of designs, as shown at 13, 14, 15, 16, and 17. The placing of these units in .the squares 10 is made to differ in the different instances and the squares 10, which are so treated, occur haphazard.

The actual arrangement of the units 13 to 17 inclusive, which occurs in a space as from the lines 18 to 19, is then repeated over a space as from line 19 to line 20, using the same pattern of decoration for the squares 13 to 17 inclusive as is necessary to avoid the provision of a large number of parts of the machine utilized.

The variation in the hp-pearance in the result is however further'carried forward by the utilization of a different color or shade over successive areas, while using the repeating pattern. This is indicated on the drawings by the shading upon the squares 21 to 25 inclusive.

In the form of the invention shown in ig. 2, the squares 26 are decoratedasa single space and the alternate squares 27 by rectangular spaces. 5 The squares 26 differ among themselves in appearance according to the principle of the former patent identified, and also the rectangles utilized in the squares 27 differ among themselves, and their arrangements in the various squares 27 are differentiated.

The haphazardly placed decorated squares 28, 29, 30, 31 and 32 are shown as decorated by squares embodying some heraldic figure. In this form of the invention, the width of the sheet of surface covering extends from lines 33 to 34 and the length of a unit of HEISSUED arrangement of decoration extending from the line to the line 36.

As shown, the space arrangement between the lines 35 and 36 is again repeated at the bottom, a portion of the succeeding square 28 being shown.- The successive squares 28 to 32 inclusive, in successive spaces, may or may not be differentiated by color while retaining the same pattern in the manner described in connection with Fig. 1, as desired.

The patterns shown, and the arrangement thereof, will be understood to be illustrative only, and any desired pattern may be utilized without departing from the spirit of the invention.

ll claim:

1. The method of decorating a surface which comprises covering the surface with a uniform pattern of spaces of like shape and a limited number of varying appearances, arranging the spaces of like appearance upon the surface with irregularity of occurrence, varying the decoration of certain of said spaces occurring haphazard by a decoration varying strikingly from that of the remaining spaces, and repeating the actual arrangement over an area so large as to be not perceived by a single glance of the eye, whereby to simulate the haphazard appearance of hand-laid tile.

2. The method of decorating a surface which comprises covering the surface with a uniform pattern of spaces of uniform shape, decorating the said spaces by a pattern which occurs regularly, the elements of said pattern having a limited number of varying appearances, the units of varying appearance arranged with studied non-uniformity, replacing some of said units by a decoration differing strikingly from the re mainder thereof, the placing of said lastnamed units diflering among the spaces wherein they occur, and the spaces so treated occurring with non-uniformity in the entire pattern, repeating the actual arrangement of decoration over an area so large as to be not perceived by a single glance of the eye.

3. The method of decorating a surface which comprises covering the surfacewith a uniform pattern of spaces of uniform shape, decorating the said spaces by a pattern which occurs regularly, the elements of said pattern having a limited number of varying appearances, the units of varying appearance arranged with studied non-uniformity, replacing some of said units by a decoration differing strikingly from the remainder thereof, the placing of said lastnamed units differing among the spaces wherein they occur, and the spaces so treated-occurring with non-uniformity in the entire pattern, repeating the actual arrangement of decoration over an area so large as to be not perceived by a single glance of the eye,- the pattern of the units of striking contrast in successive areas having the same pattern but dilfering in color from adjacent areas. I

4. A surface covering comprising in combination a series'of spaces of like shape arranged in a uniform pattern, the spaces comprising a limited number of varying appearances, the spaces of like appearance upon the surface arranged with irregularity of occurrence, certain of said spaces occurring with non-uniformity replaced by spaces of a striking difference in appearance, and with the actual arrangements of decoration repeated over successive areas so large as to be not perceived by a sin le glance of the eye, whereby the assembled covering of a surface may simulate the haphazard appearance of hand-laid tiling.

CHARLES F. HUMPHREYS. 

